The present invention generally relates to towel dispensers and, more particularly, to towel dispensers in which a length of toweling is extended from the housing for grasping and pulling by a user for separation and dispensing of one or more towels. In preferred embodiments of the invention, the toweling comprises a roll of perforated towels, in which the towels are connected together and separable at perforation formed between the towels.
Towel dispensers are well known and generally include a housing configured to receive toweling; a guide system that defines a path within the housing and that guides the toweling along the path during movement of the toweling while towels are dispensed; and a motor that moves the toweling along the path to the exterior of the housing, thereby exteriorly extending the toweling from the housing. The guide system can include rollers or fixed guides and typically includes one or more driven rollers connected to the motor. A switch or sensor for detecting motion or proximity of an object is provided to initiate the operation of the motor. For example, in a known dispenser, a controller is electrically connected to the sensor and is configured to activate the motor when the sensor generates a signal that indicates the presence of a hand.
Conventional towel dispensers also generally are configured to dispense towels from continuous rolls of non-perforated toweling and include a device for cutting the toweling to dispense individual towels. The length of the individual towels provided by the dispenser is determined by the amount of time that the motor is operated or by measuring the individual towel as it is dispensed, and such length generally is preprogrammed into the dispensers such that the same length of toweling is automatically and consistently dispensed each time the hand-motion sensor is activated.
Conventional towel dispensers generally operate as follows. A roll of toweling is placed within the housing and threaded through the guide system. A user causes a towel to be dispensed by placing a hand or other object near the sensor. Alternatively, the dispensing of toweling can be initiated by pressing a button or switch that is configured to activate the motor. Dispensing of the toweling is stopped when a predetermined length of toweling has been dispensed. Alternatively, in some cases the toweling is stopped when the hand is removed or button/switch is released.
Conventional towel dispensers are disclosed in each of U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,412,679; 6,419,136; 6,742,689; 6,745,927; 6,766,977; and 7,191,977. Each of these patents is incorporated herein by reference.
Even in view of known towel dispensers, it is believed that one or more needs exist for improved towel dispensers.